Raiders Ready To Capitalize On Week 12 Meeting With Titans
By Abraham Gutierrez
Jack Del Rio and his staff should take the time to invite NFL schedule-makers to their home this Thanksgiving, because the Oakland Raiders clash with the Tennessee Titans couldn't have come at a better time. Losers of a season-high three games, the Silver and Black look to climb back into playoff contention by going into enemy territory and not underestimating the 2-8 Titans. Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tennessee will be the site for this must-win game for the Raiders' postseason hopes. Opening kickoff is scheduled for Sunday afternoon at 1 p.m. ET and it will be broadcast live on CBS Sports.
Tennessee Titans 2015 NFL Season
It's safe to say that the Titans' season hasn't exactly gone he way everyone hopes coming out of training camp. After being humiliated by the Houston Texans in Week 8, the organization decided that a changing of the guard was in order. Just two days after that 6-20 road loss, the Titans decided to fire head coach Ken Whisenhunt and named Mike Mularkey the interim head coach. Unfortunately, very little has changed since the coaching swap, as the Titans have gone just 1-2 during that span and as of now, look more like a team headed for another high draft pick.
Prior to Week 12, Tennessee comes in winless at home with a record of 0-5, it's 2-3 on the road, 0-3 against divisional opponents, 0-6 versus non-conference foes, have lost two straight, and having dropped four of their last five games played.
Titans On Offense
Jason Michael is the Titans offensive coordinator, and if things continue to go the way they have through 10 games, he might want to start updating his resume. That's because Tennessee enters Week 12 ranked among the worst offensive attacks in all of football. The Titans are current ranked 21st in rushing yards per game (98.1), 25th in passing yards (222.9), and 30th in both, points per game (18.2) and total yards per game (321.0).
Titans On Defense
Defensively, this team is led by defensive coordinator Ray Horton, who's blessed to have the great Dick LeBeau schooling him. Thus, this defense has improved in most areas and quite frankly, is the sole reason why this team isn't winless at the moment.
Entering Week 11, the Titans defense ranks a respectable third place against the pass (214.2), sixth in total yards allowed (324.3), 17th at defending the rush (110.1) and 18th in points per game allowed (23.3).
Titans Players To Watch
On offense, the player to watch is rookie quarterback Marcus Mariota. Making his case for Rookie Of The Year honors, the Oregon product has completed better than 65 percent of his pass attempts, going 169-for-259 in his first NFL campaign for 2026 yards, 13 touchdowns and six interceptions for a quarterback rating of 96.1.
On the opposite side of the rock, the Titans players to watch are inside linebacker Wesley Woodyard, outside linebacker Brian Orakpo and defensive end Jurrell Casey. Woodyard not only comes in as the team leader in tackles (62), but is also second in the team with 5 sacks. Meanwhile, Orakpo leads the way in the sack department with 7 and Casey has also made his mark on opposing backfield with five sacks of his own.
Raiders vs. Titans NFL Week 12 Point Spreads
According to NFL Week 12 oddsmakers, the Oakland Raiders [-2] come into this game listed as two-point favorites on the road against the Tennessee Titans [+2] and the OVER/UNDER is set at a combined total of 44 points.
Abe Gutierrez's (Twitter: @GutierrezAbe) passion led him to ditch law school journey in order to launch his own publishing company. His expertise make him a valued addition to Examiner.com, AXS.com and the CBS-Sports family. Some of his work can be found on CBS-Miami (Dolphins), CBS-LosAngeles (Chargers), CBS-BayArea (Raiders), CBS-NewYork (NY Jets), CBS-TampaBay (Buccaneers), AXS.com, aExaminer.com and other online publications.